The end of the year is a fun (and busy) time in the primary classroom! Between testing, parties, review lessons, and award ceremonies, this time of year has so much going on. As a teacher to young students, I always strive to make sure that the end of the year is exciting and memorable, without jumping through too many hoops. Come along as I share some fun (and simple) ways to celebrate the end of the year in the classroom!
End of the Year Read Alouds
If you teach littles, I'm willing to bet you love books as much as I do. Reading books aloud is one of my favorite parts of the day, and I have to say my students seem to love it just as much as I do. The key to making read-aloud time special is to choose books that you know your students will love. Here are a few of my absolute faves for the final days of school:
The Night Before Summer Vacation by Natasha Wing
This is a super silly story that's written similarly to “The Night Before Christmas”. The students in your class will love following along as the children in the story wrap up their school year and prepare for summer vacation. I like to read this one on the very last day of school to build some excitement for vacation!
A Letter from Your Teacher on the Last Day of School by Shannon Olsen
This heartfelt story might just make you tear up! It's written from a teacher's point of view as she wishes her kids farewell at the end of the school year. This book is a great way to help your students understand how you see them. It helps them see that you have been cheering them on all year long and will miss them dearly!
Miss Bindergarten Celebrates the Last Day of Kindergarten by Joseph Slate
This book is a fun read if you've read some of the others in this series. Follow along as the children in Miss Bindergarten's class celebrate the end of the year with a super fun field trip!
The Last Day of Kindergarten by Nancy Loewen
This super cute story follows a little girl who is sad to see kindergarten come to an end.
As the story progresses, she sees that graduating is a fun experience too! This is a great story for any kiddos in your class that seem a bit apprehensive about the end of the school year.
Junie B. Jones is a Graduation Girl by Barbara Park
All of my students love Junie B. Jones! This book is a tad longer than a typical read aloud, so it's great to split over a couple of days. Your students will love listening to Junie B.'s graduation shenanigans!
End of the Year Student Gifts
Do you give out gifts in your classroom? I love sending my kiddos off with a little something, but I've learned over the years that it doesn't need to be a huge production! Here are a few things I've done in the past for simple student gifts that my kiddos LOVED:
- Book & a bookmark: Bookmarks like these are fun since kiddos can color them. I pair them with a $1 book from the Scholastic catalog for a great end of year gift.
- Bubbles & Chalk: Dollar Tree is a great spot to grab a variety of inexpensive gifts for students. A small container of bubbles and a package of chalk for each kiddo is a fun gift to give just in time for summer fun!
- Activity book, crayons & stickers: I like to print out a bunch of fun worksheets and bind them together with a large piece of construction paper. You can also find activity books at the dollar store if you'd rather go that route. Pair them with a box of fresh crayons and a sheet of fun stickers.
No matter what you choose, young students are always excited. It really doesn't take much to make them smile, especially at the end of the year. You can always opt for an experience instead of a gift too. Think ice cream sundae party, bubble day, pizza party, or movie and popcorn day. All of these options would be great to celebrate the end of the year!
End of the Year Activities
Last, but not least, I have the cutest end of the year craft to share with you guys! When it comes to crafts and cutesy projects, I'm all for keeping things… you guessed it – simple! My kiddos LOVE crafting, but I also need to factor in how crazy the end of the year is when planning them. That's why I love these print-and-go, banners!
The banners are super easy to use, and they make the perfect end of the year keepsake. I also love that they allow the kiddos to reflect on all we've done throughout the year and choose their favorite memories. Not to mention, this is a great way to encourage creativity in your classroom too.
The banners come in two options. The first is black and white and perfect for printing on Astrobrights paper. The second option has rainbow letters and is great for printing on white paper. The banners have a space for students to fill in the following:
- Name
- Age
- Favorites (book, subject, special)
- Favorite Memory
- Classroom Drawing
- Something they learned
Kiddos will LOVE filling these out and decorating them at the end of the year. I like to provide markers and stickers for added fun. Once these are complete, they are super cute and displayed on a bulletin board or down a hallway. When we're getting ready to send them home, I like to slip each one into a plastic sleeve and pop them into their memory books for one final addition.
Be sure to check out these end of the year banners in my TpT Shop if you're in need of a fun, simple end of the year craft that your students will love! Have fun celebrating the final days of school with your kiddos!
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